Giant Yellow Duck’s Creator Not Flattered by Chinese Imitators

Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman says the only place to see his original duck is in Hong Kong. “If people want the real duck, they have to come to me.” See more photos of the duck

From fake eggs to faux brand-name handbags, China’s enterprising counterfeiters are known for pushing the limits. And ever since Hong Kong installed a 54-foot yellow duck in its harbor, charming millions of fans, they’ve been especially busy, building a veritable brood of imitation yellow ducks that now dot cities across the mainland.

On Friday in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, residents were especially delighted when the state-run Changjiang Daily announced that a giant yellow duck would also soon be visiting.

According to Changjiang Daily, the Wuhan duck is being brought as part of an arrangement brokered between Chinese real-estate developer Country Garden and the duck’s copyright owner. The paper did not specify who the copyright owner is, but described the yellow duck as already having traveled to “more than 10 countries,” similar to Mr. Hofman’s duck, which has toured cities from Sydney to São Paulo.

Reached by phone on Friday, Mr. Hofman said he had not made any agreements with Country Garden.